


References

by Fic_Request_Blog



Series: Avengers Drabbles [5]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Love Potion/Spell, M/M, Magic, Oops, Romantic Comedy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-23
Updated: 2017-07-19
Packaged: 2018-09-19 11:59:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,038
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9439103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fic_Request_Blog/pseuds/Fic_Request_Blog
Summary: Steve drinks a love potion. Bruce is sorry. Tony is scared. And, somewhere, Natasha is laughing.





	1. Chapter 1

"How does it work?"

"It is mixed within a drink and the person who ingests it becomes infatuated with the first person they see."

"That's amazing, how does it work?"

Thor stopped, "I, did I not already answer that?"

Bruce laughed, "No, I meant why does it do that? How does it produce that effect?"

"I...I know not."

"Okay, no problem. Could you mix it with something for me? I'd like to run a few tests."

"Of course. May I mix it in this?"

Bruce looked up from his computer, nodding vaguely as Thor dumped the powder into a water bottle. Thor stood in the lab, big and out of place in the middle of a field of delicate machinery. Placing the bottle down where he had picked it up (figuring it hadn't disturbed anything there before, so it had to be safe) the god wandered over to his hunched up friend.

"Is there anything else I can be of assistance with?"

"Hmmm? Oh, no, thank you very much for bringing it here. It'll be an interesting test subject. May I have the powder?"

"Ah, yes."

With that, Thor left as quickly as possible, leaving his friend to his whims. 'To want a love potion, only to study it? What strange beings humans are.'  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hey, Bruce, have you seen my- Oh, found it, never mind."

The doctor turned as Steve finished draining the bottle, "-!"

"Hey, big guy, have you seen the reactor for the-"

"Tony, have I ever told you that you have the most beautiful eyes?"

As Dr. Banner slowly curled into a quivering mass of misery on his chair, Tony stared at Steve, who at the moment was giving him a very strange look, "No, I don't think so, but thanks. Anyways, Bruce, do you have the reactor for-"

"They're a deeper hazel than the richest chocolate."

This time Tony actually turned to him, "Have you been drinking? And Bruce, are you alright?"

"This is all my fault..."

"And your wit is unmatched by anyone I've ever met."

"I'm just going to go kill myself now..."

"And the amazing things you create!"

"I'm just...I hate myself..."

"And your perfect smile, it's like someone took a sheet off of the sun~"

"I'll just melt into the floor now, thank you very much..."

Tony put both hands up, "Look, I just want the reactor for the-"

"Tony can I-"

"What is wrong with Steve? Bruce!"

The man mumbled, "He drank a love potion."

Tony snapped his mouth shut, then shouted, "THOR!"  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So, you're telling me Steve drank a love potion, saw me, and now is in love with me for an indiscernible time, which, by the way, has no cure?"

Thor nodded wretchedly, "I am sorry for such a mishap, I did not think he would drink it. But it will go away in time."

"No, it's not your fault. I didn't realize you were pouring it into his water bottle."

For a moment they all stared through the glass at Steve, who, once he realized Tony was looking, began to wave quite happily.

"So, there's nothing we can do?"

"I am afraid there is no cure."

"Bruce."

"Yes?"

"You wanted to research it, you take Steve and go research. Keep him away from me."

"Right."  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The rest of the day was so normal, Tony had nearly forgotten the events by morning, almost. 

He opened his bedroom door. He then stared down at the floor. He had to admit, they were pretty. Very well chosen, they even looked somewhat groomed. Even the red, white, and blue ribbons were fairly tasteful. It was just...how to put it, scary? Picking up the roses, he quietly deposited them in his room, meaningfully ignoring the note attached, and continued on to breakfast.

There he was met with an extremely enthusiastic Steve in an apron, making pancakes in the shape of their names. The blonde gave him the 'Steve Rogers' pancakes with a blinding smile, "Good morning, did you like your present?"

He stared at the mildly disconcerting dough (he didn't know how he felt about eating Steve Rogers) as he distractedly nodded, "The flowers, uh, yes, very pretty."

This earned him a hesitant kiss on the cheek and another smile, "I was hoping you would. Would you like more?"

Backing away slowly, he shook his head, "Uh, oh, uh, no, that's alright. Uh, you know, more precious when in smaller amounts and all..."

Clint was staring at them from over his coffee mug, "Well, congratulations to the newly-weds."

Steve stared for a moment before grinning at Tony, "Could we get married? That would be-"

"Illegal."

Bruce came into the room looking as though he had dragged his face along pavement all night, which, considering he had gone through Steve's long-winded speeches about Tony's beauty, could have been a possibility.

"You guys may have to get used to it for a while, Steve accidentally drank a love potion and Thor doesn't know how long it will last."

"Well," Thor began, "it also depends on how much Captain Rogers liked the Man of Iron to begin with. If he hated Tony to start with, it wouldn't have worked."

Now Tony was all ears as Steve sat next to him eating his Tony Stark pancakes (which was also creepy to Tony, but he decided it wasn't worth bringing up).

"So...how long is your estimate?"

Thinking for a moment, Thor finally shrugged, "It could be from a few days to a few weeks. If he really liked you, it could be a few months."

Tony glanced at the man smiling at him, then to Thor, and then back again, "So, Steve, how do you feel about a...vacation?"

With a grin, the blonde cupped one of Tony's hands in his, "If you're going, I'd love it."

Clint burst into laughter as Natasha walked in.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It wasn't that the attention was bad or anything, in fact, Tony had to admit being courted formally was really quite nice. Steve would get him anything he asked for, even things he hadn't realized he'd wanted. Tony never argued with people giving him chocolate, or liquor, or even dinner. 

However, there were some things that made it rather horrifying. Apparently, Steve could draw. This was something Tony had known of, but was never overly interested in. At least, not until he'd found the drawings of him Steve had recently started. Some of them were very good, actually all of them were, it's just... he preferred to be drawn without...leaves in front of his private areas, or halos, or grapes. In fact, he just preferred to be drawn with his clothes on, or completely naked because that seemed less creepy than weird little cherub kids and....other...things...

That, he had to admit, was one of the less worry-some things. Steve also wrote poetry. Good, very well written....romantic poetry, but it was...sappy, to put it lightly. Which, by itself, wasn't that bad, but to have it read to him, with guitar music (when did Captain America learn to play the guitar, by the way?) from the hallway outside his door in the mornings as he woke up was an entirely different matter. Which, even that wasn't that bad until he'd realized that some of the other Avengers (namely Thor and Natasha) actually sat outside and listened to it too. They even applauded Steve.

The only thing he could do was hole himself up in his lab until hunger drove him out or Steve's incessant knocking on the glass drove him mad. He had gotten to the point of asking Jarvis where Steve was in the building so he could steer clear of him.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two weeks later and Tony had become fairly used to the routine. Wake up, be sung to, have breakfast made for him usually made to resemble something related to Steve (He didn't eat the waffles Steve had made to look like his face. That had been the line.), go work in the lab until Steve forced him out for lunch in which tentative physical passes were made at him that he resolutely refused, go back to the lab, be dragged out for a romantic dinner, run back to the lab again, then hide in his room after becoming too exhausted to work. Wash, rinse, and repeat.

It wasn't until a Thursday that it was broken. He woke to blessed silence, went to a breakfast that (sadly) was not made for him, and hung around until he saw Steve.

"Good morning."

The blonde shuffled over to the coffee pot with a mumbled, "Morning..."

"Sounds like you had a rough night."

"Ugh, it feels as though I've been put through an emotional twister. And I can't remember the last few weeks at all."

Steve didn't include that he had woken up with an extreme hankering for writing and an urge to kiss Tony as soon as he'd seen him. Not to mention the frankly disturbing drawings he'd found all over his room.

"I do not see Captain Rogers reading poetry this morning, have you recovered?"

A blank stare was all Thor received.

"Yup, seems like the effects have worn off."

"Effects?"

Bruce came in, noticed how Steve was not hovering over Tony, and smiled, "Oh, you're cured."

"Cured?"

"Here I was hoping it would last a bit longer. It was getting really elaborate, what with his singing and all," Clint grinned, grabbing a box of cereal.

"Singing?"

"Go throw yourself off the building, Clint. It wasn't funny, it was disturbing."

"It?"

Thor frowned, "Do you not remember anything Captain Rogers?"

"Anything?"

"Nah, he said he couldn't"

"What?"

Clint smirked, "That's okay, I still have some very good blackmail. Maybe I can get you to pay me not to show him, Tony."

"WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHAT'S GOING ON?! I DON'T GET ANY OF THESE REFERENCES!"  



	2. Sequel to References

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sequel to References  
> Or  
> Jarvis is the Best Wing-AI.

Steve stared at Bruce, fingers clenching in the material of the couch, “I…I did what to Tony?”

Bruce sighed, “Steve, don’t beat yourself up. You were under a spell and Tony knows that.”

“Then why has he been avoiding me for the past week?”, Steve spits out, already regretting raising his voice. Bruce didn’t deserve that. Ducking his head, Steve sighed, “I’m sorry.”

Bruce reached out slowly and patted him gently on the shoulder, “He’s in the lab. Go talk to him.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Steve glared at the door to Tony’s workshop, one hand planted tentatively against the metal, “Jarvis, he’s not going to let me in, is he?”

The AI’s voice was silent a moment before replying, “Yes, Captain. I’m afraid Sir has expressly forbidden me from allowing you into the workshop.”

Sighing, Steve slumped against the wall beside him. What else could he have expected? It wasn’t fair. He certainly hadn’t planned on drinking the potion and it wasn’t like he could have controlled his actions anyhow!

An odd crackling noise sounded above him before Jarvis spoke, “However, Sir does not know you are currently waiting for him.”

Steve cocked a brow at the ceiling, a smile quirking up his lips, “Are you suggesting I wait out here until he opens the door and then corner him? Isn’t that lying by omission?”

Jarvis went suspiciously silent as Steve slid his back down the wall, legs stretching out across the hallway. At least he had Bruce and Jarvis on his side.

But what was he even going to say? Sorry for hitting on you for a week, can we go back to being best friends? Sorry for hitting on you for a week, I probably meant every word I said? Steve put his head in his hands and groaned. This would be a lot easier if he didn’t love Tony. This would be a lot easier if he could just remember what he’d done and what Tony’s reaction had been. 

He scowled. Obviously, Tony hadn’t wanted any of his advances. The man had been hiding away ever since Steve had recovered. And he certainly hadn’t taken advantage of any of the possible propositions Steve had likely offered. Tony Stark, the playboy philanthropist, would have accepted his advances if he wanted him.

A blush heated his face as Steve drew up his knees, wrapping his arms around them and plopping his head down. He didn’t want to lose Tony. It’d been a rough start, but they were quick to fit together. He liked how they worked, liked how the Avengers worked now. Iron Man was so important to him.

Tony made him a better person, no matter how briskly Tony would deny it. The team was so much more fun with Tony too, even if the man’s habit of playing pranks on them was difficult to deal with. Tony had opened his home to them, had given them all somewhere to go after each battle, somewhere safe. Then the guy had turned out to be just a dorky rich kid who was enthusiastic about science and named his robots. 

How couldn’t Steve fall in love with the man?

They’d eaten pizza together while Tony tried to catch him up on more movies than a person could watch in a lifetime. Every few days, Tony and Bruce would pick him up and introduce him to a new restraint, to try something foreign and strange and good. They just worked so well together.

It didn’t hurt that Tony was maybe the most attractive guy he’d ever met too. Smooth in a way Steve could never hope to be, Tony was simply stunning. He could be in a three-piece suit or a tank-top covered in grease and look just as incredible. 

Lifting his head, Steve stared up at the door, bemoaning his fate. If only the Asgardians thought to label things. At least then he’d still have his best friend.

With a sudden beep, the door to the workshop slid open, revealing an obviously worn-out Tony. Steve felt a pang of guilt at corning him when the man clearly needed sleep, but he grit his teeth at the apology swelling in his throat. Tony hadn’t given him much choice.

Springing to his feet, Steve shoved his hand through the doorway, trusting that Jarvis would never close it on him even at Tony’s request, “Please, Tony, I just want to talk.”

Yelping in surprise, Tony backed into the workshop, eyes wide and alert, “Damn it, Jarvis. What didn’t you understand about keeping him out?”

Electric voice seeming to bristle, Jarvis said, “I did not open the door for Captain Rogers, Sir.”

Tony watched Steve from behind the nearest table, eyes flickering between the door and the man currently inching into the room, “Well, Steve, always good to see you, but it’s been a long day. So, how about we tab this for the morning and I’ll just be on my way?”

Steve sighed, leaning back against the wall next to the door, “Tony, please stop hiding from me. I know what happened and I’m sorry it’s made you so uncomfortable. Please?”

Licking his lips nervously, Tony glanced at Steve before studying the table’s surface, “You, uh, remembered?”

“No. Bruce told me. Just enough to get the idea. I’m sorry, Tony, but I couldn’t help it. I’m really sorry.” 

“What do you want, Steve?”

Surprised, Steve snapped his mouth shut, arms folding over his chest. What did he want? He just wanted to be able to see Tony again, to be able to talk and laugh with each other.

“Tony”, he stammered, trying to find the right words, “Tony, I just want my best friend back.”

Tony didn’t look up but a frown clearly settled onto his lips. He muttered just loud enough for Steve to hear, “Well, I’m not sure that’s what I want.”

Breath catching in his throat, Steve clenched his hands, “You…don’t….”

He stopped, eyes falling shut. How could this have gone so wrong? How could Tony hate him this much from one stupid mistake? Tony didn’t even want to be his friend anymore. What did that even mean for Steve? Would he have to leave the Tower? Where would he even go? Steve didn’t have anywhere else. He’d thought this was going to be his home until…

Tony didn’t want to be his friend. 

Steve abruptly opened his eyes, surprise increasing as he noticed the blush sitting on Tony’s cheeks, “Oh.”

The blush seemed to deepen at his exclamation, spreading further over Tony’s face. 

With hope sitting high on his chest, Steve unfolded his arms, taking a few steps forward, “Tony…do you-do you mean…?”

“Yeah, Cap!”, Tony shouted, throwing his hands up in frustration, “Yeah. I’m the asshole. You were under some Asgardian potion shit and I took full advantage in enjoying you serenading me. Just, go away, okay? You know now, so just…just go away.”

Steve didn’t flinch under Tony’s glare, just walked towards him. Tony back-peddled until he hit the table behind him, fear and shame flashing in his eyes, “Hey, if you’re going to deck me, at least let me put the suit on first.”

Steve laughed, a little affronted that Tony would even think he’d hit him, as he stepped up to the shorter man. Slowly, he reached up to cup Tony’s face in both his hands, marveling at the way Tony’s face began to soften.

“Tony, I’m…I’m not going to hit you.”

“Oh”, Tony said, fingers coming up to rest atop Steve’s, “you’re not?”

Smiling, Steve shook his head, “No. Actually, I’d…I’d like to kiss you if you’ll let me. You know, not under the influence of any drugs or anything.”

Tony grinned, “Oh, so you wanted to remember this time?”

Steve couldn’t take his eyes off Tony’s lips as they formed each word, “Yes.”

Tony was the one to close the gap, surging up onto his toes to catch Steve’s lips with his own. They didn’t part until Tony had lean back far enough to take a breath.

Steve opened his eyes slowly, fingers brushing against Tony’s cheeks, “Wow.”

Staring for a second, Tony cracked up, tucking his head in against Steve’s chest, “Wow? Is that all you’ve got to say, Cap?”

Steve grinned, “Yeah. Wow sums it up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all! There was a request for a continuation to References, so here it is!  
> Warning, References was written in 2012 and this new chapter was just written in 2017, so it might...be a little weird?


End file.
